(rshsdepot) Poughkeepsie, NY RR Bridge

[jdent1_@_optonline.net]

Thanks to Bernie Rudberg for forwarding this to me.  I was just up in Poughkeepsie last week for a train show.  On the way back I stopped to take more pictures of this magnificent structure.
Jim Dent

This item from the Poughkeepsie Journal looks encouraging.  We may get to walk on the bridge one day soon.
 
Bernie Rudberg
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PoughkeepsieJournal.com - Lloyd to end suit against bridge-walk group
             
                 Wednesday, November 24, 2004
 
                  Lloyd to end suit against bridge-walk group
                  Ulster-side tours may be resumed
                  By Bond Brungard
                  For the Poughkeepsie Journal
 
                  HIGHLAND -- After a long dispute, the Town of Lloyd has agreed 
                  to withdraw a lawsuit against Walkway Over the Hudson 
                  regarding building code violations. 
                  And the nonprofit group that owns the 6,000-foot Poughkeepsie 
                  Railroad Bridge has agreed to pay a $250 fine as part the 
                  settlement with the town. 
                  The town sued the group in the late 1990s after members defied 
                  a court order that barred them from using the Lloyd side of 
                  the bridge. On that side, the group, under different 
                  leadership at the time, constructed buildings without 
                  obtaining permission from Lloyd. 
                  ''We dropped the lawsuit because they're abiding by the 
                  building code,'' Lloyd Supervisor Bob Shepard said. 
                  The agreement also stipulates the group must get a building 
                  permit for structures in place while it removes part of a shed 
                  and a makeshift restroom. 
                  ''We do have cooperation with the town,'' said Fred Schaeffer, 
                  chairman of Walkway Over the Hudson's board of directors. 
                  The bridge, which towers 212 feet above the Hudson River, has 
                  been unusable since a fire closed it in 1974. Renovation 
                  supporters say opening it will create a fine recreational 
                  option for residents and visitors. 
                  Varied estimates 
                  Schaeffer has said it could cost from as little as $2 million 
                  to deck the bridge to as much as $10 million. And officials 
                  agree it could cost even more -- more than $20 million -- to 
                  demolish the historic structure. 
                  State officials, including representatives of the Hudson River 
                  Valley Greenway, the state Department of Transportation, the 
                  Department of Environmental Conservation and the state Office 
                  of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, met with 
                  Schaeffer last summer to discuss uses for the span. 
                  At the time, Greenway Chairman Carmella Mantello said the 
                  bridge could be a key link in connecting Greenway trails on 
                  both sides of the river. With temporary decking in place on 
                  the Lloyd side of the bridge, tours had been given until the 
                  group ran afoul of the town. Now the settlement paves the way 
                  for more tours. 
                  ''It lets them take people on the bridge," Shepard said. 
                  The current agreement allows access to the bridge for 
                  professionals, such as engineers, architects or journalists -- 
                  not the general public. 
                  Now the nonprofit group can conduct a $70,000 feasibility 
                  study, funded by grants from the state, the Dutchess County 
                  Industrial Development Agency and the Dyson Foundation. 
                  The study will look at the materials needed to deck the 
                  bridge, whether concrete or wood, whether the bridge needs any 
                  structural improvements, and will look at other amenities such 
                  as parking and lighting, Schaeffer said. 
                  Bond Brungard can be reached at 
                  newsroom_@_poughkeepsiejournal.com 
                  Resources 
                  For information on Walkway Over the Hudson, go to 
                  www.walkway.org or call 845-454-9649.  
 


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The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org

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End of RSHSDepot Digest V1 #1034
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The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org